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As the U.S. phases down HFC production under the AIM Act, the HVACR industry is facing significant pressure to manage these refrigerants more effectively to avoid potential shortages. This effort largely depends on recovering and reclaiming refrigerants, a strategy the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is counting on to maintain existing equipment despite shrinking supplies of new refrigerants.

This is the same approach the EPA used during the phaseout of HCFCs such as R-22, where reclaiming these ozone-depleting substances ensured an adequate refrigerant supply for servicing equipment. However, many are concerned that the current amount of reclaimed HFCs falls far short of meeting demand — and with good reason. EPA previously reported that only relatively small amounts of HFCs were being reclaimed, and in 2020, a mere 1.6% of the HFCs sold were reclaimed and ready for reuse.

However, the trend may be changing, as the EPA recently reported a roughly 20% increase in the total volume of HFCs reclaimed in 2023 compared to 2022 (see Figure 1, Table 1). The report credits the rise mainly to the increased reclamation of R-134a and R-410A, which drove much of the year-over-year growth. The EPA also noted substantial year-over-year increases in the reclamation of R-404A and R-407A. This comes on the heels of an approximately 40% increase in HFC reclamation that took place between 2021 and 2022.

Reclaimed ODS and HFC refrigerants from 2000 to 2023 graph.

Click graph to enlarge

FIGURE 1: Reclaimed ODS and HFC refrigerants from 2000 to 2023. (Courtesy of EPA)

 

Year 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Refrigerant(s) lbs lbs lbs lbs lbs lbs lbs lbs lbs lbs lbs lbs lbs lbs
HCFC-22 7,907,536 8,290,406 9,401,446 8,701,264 7,823,982 7,811,832 9,408,329 8,680,022 8,041,474 7,821,260 7,154,667 6,274,644 5,687,141 4,847,578
HCFC-123 316,595 335,760 316,340 445,854 374,357 399,683 415,516 592,256 535,673 581,941 575,887 576,776 425,623 711,028
Other HCFCs 70,873 74 447 1,088 7,041 199 4,262 404 1,254 10,407 1,866 38 250 370
CFCs 1,311,448 1,490,405 1,459,015 1,560,452 1,260,385 1,252,359 943,077 1,267,120 787,299 708,029 591,216 513,560 397,741 377,567
ODS Blends* 187,974 133,803 230,792 160,639 149,012 105,177 98,503 116,366 142,441 163,040 100,422 118,428 43,169 39,123
HFC-134a - - - - - - - 1,858,132 1,910,240 2,399,952 1,956,644 1,844,793 2,313,639 2,505,902
HFC-32 - - - - - - - 0 0 301 32 904 505 13,684
R-404A - - - - - - - 486,719 506,639 485,338 478,556 416,352 443,977 880,502
R-407A - - - - - - - 111,255 143,254 105,435 87,162 60,580 22,874 105,497
R-410A - - - - - - - 2,103,404 2,043,667 2,596,861 2,347,000 2,550,164 3,569,249 4,625,948
R-407C - - - - - - - 167,445 167,248 213,668 315,424 366,521 473,115 342,904
Other HFCs** - - - - - - - 363,310 479,261 258,185 205,997 172,118 757,313 597,927

TABLE 1: Quantity of reclaimed refrigerants in pounds from 2010 to 2023 (data on HFC reclamation was not required until 2017). (Courtesy of EPA)

  • * "ODS Blends" is an aggregation of chemical blends that contain a mixture of ODS refrigerants or blends that contain a mixture of ODS and one or more HFCs (e.g., R-401A).
  • ** "Other HFCs" is an aggregation of HFC blends (e.g., R-448A) and neat HFCs (e.g., HFC-23).

 

EPA is hoping that HFC reclamation will continue this upward trajectory as the U.S. continues to phase down the production and consumption of virgin HFCs. Starting January 1, 2024, total production and consumption of virgin HFCs was reduced to 60% of the baseline, with further phasedown steps taking place through 2036.

Despite the legal prohibition on venting HFCs, HVACR contractors and technicians have often skipped recovering refrigerants due to inadequate financial incentives and the added costs of dealing with mixed refrigerants. However, this is changing, as many reclaimers are no longer charging for mixed refrigerants, and they're paying more to those who bring in recovered refrigerants.

Find an EPA-certified reclaimer here.